Tag: Jazz Records

A Few Non-Blue Notes; A Flat Market?

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Is it just me, or is there a softness in the market these days? To expedite my posting I  sometimes do a search of jazz records for sale filtered through the highest prices first. There are often $1,000 records and many in the $500-plus category. Lately, however, the searches in that range have been coming up short. Are prices relatively flat at this point or is there just less good stuff on eBay now? These things go in cycles so I wouldn’t put any meaning into it either way. In the meantime, here are some of the rare jazz records that came up on my latest search.

Red Rodney, Signal 1206. This is an interesting one because of the condition. There’s a nice clear picture of the cover, which may give the impression that the cover is in nice condition. However if you look closely and read the description, the cover is in only G condition. And the vinyl is only VG. Despite the condition issues, however, the bidding is already more than $400. I guess this LP is in greater demand than I would have realized.

This is another one that’s getting up there in price, somewhat to my surprise: Booker Little, Time 52011. This is an original mono pressing with the deep grooves and gatefold cover. The record is in M- condition and the cover is VG+. The bidding has already topped $250 and the auction closes later today. Perhaps my previous comment about a soft market was premature.

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Catching on On Some Interesting Jazz Vinyl

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When I last left eBay, about a week ago, here were some of the items I was watching:

Thelonious Monk, Brilliant Corners, Riverside 226. This was an original pressing with the white labels. It was listed in VG+ condition for the vinyl and VG++ for the cover and I recall the seller as being very reputable from previous dealings, as buyer and seller. As I was packing my records to move, I noticed that my copy of Brilliant Corners was a blue-label pressing and it was in maybe VG+ condition. I put this one on my watch list to potentially bid on it, not just as potential fodder for Jazz Collector. I think I would have gone to at least $180 for an original pressing. This one sold for $100, so I missed out.

I also had my eye on this for my own collection, but I knew the price would go way beyond my comfort zone — and it did: Lee Morgan Sextet, Blue Note 1541. This was an original Lexington Avenue pressing and the vinyl was in M- condition. The cover was VG+. It sold for $1,475. One of these days I’ll find a reasonable copy for the right price. Right?

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Jazz Vinyl on eBay: Ad Lib & a Few Blue Notes

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I’m looking forward to the day, coming soon, when my real work slows down and I will be able to post more items and more thoughtful items on Jazz Collector. In the meantime, I will keep updating some of the records we like to watch on eBay and keep an eye out for interesting items as well. For today:

What’s a VG-minus version of this record worth: Jackie McLean, the New Tradition, Ad Lib 6601? We’ll find out later today. This one is just a little bit more than $200 and is a little tempting, to be honest, based on the seller’s description that it sounds decent. I had a VG copy of this I sold years ago for $500 and have always regretted it, and I’d love to get another copy for the collection. Probably not this one, but I’ll keep looking.

Here’s a nice original Blue Note: Horace Silver with Art Blakey and Sabu, Blue Note 1520. This is an original Lexington Avenue pressing in M- condition. I don’t normally think of the Horace Silvers an the same league — value-wise — as some of the other Blue Notes, but this one is already more than $600.

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Catching Up on Some Jazz Vinyl

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Let’s catch up on some jazz vinyl we’ve been watching on eBay:

First there were those beautiful 10-inch Blue Notes: Clifford Brown, New Star on the Horizon, Blue Note 5032. This was an original Lexington Avenue pressing listed in M- condition for the vinyl and what we would characterize as VG++ for the cover. A beautiful copy. It sold for $535.49. From the same seller was this: Miles Davis Volume 2, Blue  Note 5022. This was in similar condition to the Clifford record and sold for $630.

That brilliant copy of Thelonious Monk, Brilliant Corners, Riverside 226, did not reach the  $1,000 bin, to my surprise. This was a white-label pressing in M- condition for both the record and the cover. It sold for $898.08.

We’ve never seen a copy of this record fetch a higher price:

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More Jazz Vinyl: Monk 10-Inch & A Few Bargains?

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Here’s some jazz vinyl we’ve been watching on eBay:

Look at the great cover on this one: Thelonious Monk Plays, Prestige 189. This is a 10-inch pressing that was listed in M- condition for the vinyl and VG+ for the cover. It was part of a nice crop of 10-inch Prestiges offered by the Philadelphia Record Exchange and it sold for $295. You may recall that I bid on the James Moody 10-inchers from this auction. I wound up winning all three for about $150 total, about $50 each. To me that’s a fine deal, great music, even though, perhaps, the resale market for these records won’t be so great. Won’t matter though, since I’ll have thousands of records to sell before I get to these.

Some interesting, lower, prices than usual: Sonny Rollins, Tenor Madness Prestige 7047. This was an original New York pressing in VG condition for both the record and cover. This is quite a classic, of course, yet it sold for less than $60. The dealer mentioned something about the cover being “professionally” repaired, whatever that means, so that could have impacted the price. Still, even in VG condition, you’d expect more, based on the prices we’ve seen lately for original Blue Notes and Prestiges. Here’s another:

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Some More Jazz Vinyl For the $1,000 Bin

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There’s quite a bit of jazz vinyl to catch up on, which will be have to do in a few posts, so let’s start simply this morning with the $1,000 bin, much of which, it seems, we predicted.

Kenny Dorham, Quiet Kenny, New Jazz 8225. This was an original pressing in VG++ condition for both the record and cover and, as noted, it had the promo stamp. It sold for $1,525. Probably would have gotten more without the promo stamp.

Dexter Gordon, Dexter Blows Hot and Cool, Dootone 207. This was an original pressing with the red vinyl. The record was VG+ and the cover was listed in VG+, although there was a full split on the bottom and a partial split on the top. There was some question whether this would prevent it from breaking the $1,000 barrier, but it did not: This one sold for $1,136.

This one had it all going for it: Helen Merrill, Emarcy 36006. It was an original pressing, with the blue writing on the back cover, the seller was Euclid Records and the pictures accompanying the listing were quite clear and bright. The price was $1,568.

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More Jazz Vinyl: Byrd, Trane, Book, Jackie

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I spent some time yesterday putting some new items in the Jazz Collector Price Guide and came across a few odds and ends worth sharing.

This is yet another Blue Note that has hit a new high price in the past few weeks, at least as far as we can tell: Donald Byrd, Byrd in Hand, Blue Note 4019. This was an original West 63rd Street pressing and it was listed in M- condition for the vinyl and probably VG++ for the cover. It had a nice picture, as you can see. The price was $637, which was not only a high for this record, but a high for any Donald Byrd Blue Note for the Jazz Collector Price Guide. This follows recent high prices for Wayne Shorter and Ike Quebec on Blue Note as well.

This one was getting a little bidding action and I’m not sure why, although it is certainly an excellent record: John Coltrane, Ole, Atlantic 1373. This seemed to be a routine pressing with the purple and orange label. With Atlantics of this vintage, I’m not sure how to tell if it’s an original, other than the heaviness of the vinyl and cover. Perhaps someone out there has some more information. Anyway this was in M- condition for the record and cover and it sold for $53.01.

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Jackie-ing On eBay

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As we were catching up on items from last week, we noticed some interesting Jackie McLean records we were watching, so here comes some Jackie-ing on a lovely Monday morning in The Berkshires.

This seller had a bunch of nice records, but they were not in near-mint condition, so the prices seemed pretty reasonable, if you were willing to gamble. Here’s an example: Jackie McLean, Jackie’s Pal, Prestige 7068. This looked like an original New York pressing with the deep grooves and the flat edge and it was listed in VG++ condition for the cover and VG+ for the record. I could see where bidders, such as myself, might be a bit wary. The description of the cover sounded a lot more like VG+ than VG++ and the description of the vinyl used this language: “Scratches can be seen.” The record sold for $260.15. Somebody took a risk. This one came from the same seller: Jackie McLean, Alto Madness, Prestige 7114. This was also  an original New York pressing and this one was listed in

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A Prestige Pair & One For The $1,000 Bin

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Here are a few more jazz vinyl odds and ends we’ve been watching on eBay:

Let’s start with a couple more Prestiges. Frank Foster, Hope Meets Foster, Prestige 7021. This looks to be an original pressing with the New York address and the deep groove. It was listed in M- condition for the record and the cover looked to be VG+ or VG++. The price was $548.78, which is a nice price but in this market I would have thought it might have sold for even more. If that Prestige sold for less than expected, this one got top dollar, based on what we’ve previously seen for this record in the Jazz Collector Price Guide:

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On eBay: Book & Blue Note

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We see that some of the big sellers are back on eBay this weekend. Here is some of the jazz vinyl we are watching here at Jazz Collector:

Booker Ervin, The Song Book, Prestige 7318. Booker was one of the unheralded greats on tenor sax and, to me, this is his best record as a leader. He wails on All The Things You Are and Just Friends and shows off his power and warmth on the ballads as well. With an all-star rhythm section featuring Tommy Flanagan, Richard Davis and Alan Dawson. If I ever get back to doing my Jazz Vinyl Countdown, this stays in the collection no matter what. Anyway, the copy on sale on eBay is an

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